Entries from April 2017

The Winder-Barrow baseball team was tested Friday, but rallied for a 3-2 win in eight innings over Harrison in game one and then rolled to an 8-0 shutout in game two of a GHSA Class AAAAAA first-round series.
The Bulldoggs will now host Richmond Hill in the second round in a best-of-three series starting with a doubleheader Thursday.
After Harrison jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the third inning of game one, the Bulldoggs pushed across runs in the fourth and fifth innings to tie the score.
Skylor Murphy led off the bottom of the eighth for the Bulldoggs with a double and after Pat DeMarco was intentionally walked, Trent Maddox laid a bunt down the third-base line for an infield hit, setting up Beau Hanna's game-winning sacrifice fly to center.
In game two, Winder-Barrow starter Darrell Woodall carried a perfect game into the bottom of the seventh before surrendering a one-out single to Harrison pinch-hitter Bryan Deegan. Woodall finished the night allowing just the one hit and striking out nine.
The Bulldoggs got on the board in the top of the second when Zack Smith led off with a solo home run. Hanna and Smith had RBI singles in the third and the Bulldoggs scored two more in the fourth and three in the sixth to blow it open.
Top-ranked Winder-Barrow (29-2) tied a school record for wins in a season with the sweep, matching the mark set by the 1979 state championship team.
For the full story on Friday's games and a preview of the Richmond Hill series, see the May 3 issue of the Barrow News-Journal.

Coming off a tough loss against Gainesville a week ago, Apalachee came into Friday night's GHSA Class AAAAAA first-round playoff match ready to prove they belong. The Wildcats would have to get past the seventh-ranked Osborne Cardinals.
It came down to the foot of the Wildcats' Adolfo Landeras to decide the game. He was able to make his penalty kick, giving Apalachee a dramatic 4-3 win and a berth in the second round of the playoffs. Apalachee (13-3-1) will travel to Richmond Hill on Wednesday to face the Region 2 champion Wildcats.
Landeras was quite to the point when he was asked what was goind through his mind as he was about to take the kick.
"I just wanted to get my team to the second round of the playoffs," he said.
For Apalachee head coach Chad Hooper, it felt as if there was an extra man on the field.
"After we went down to 10 men, I knew it was going to be all heart at that point," Hooper said. "These guys gave it everything they had, and actually, our 11th man was the fans tonight. They're the ones that really pushed us through. I'm just proud of the guys for coming through and sticking it to the end and not putting their head down and giving up."
See the full story in the May 3 issue of the Barrow News-Journal.

Dalton High School's boys soccer team has had more than its share of talented players in recent years as the Catamounts have won three state championships and at times seemed to dominate opponents at will, but sophomore Omar Hernandez is having a season that stands out even among that storied history.
Hernandez scored three goals and had two assists on Friday to lead the Cats to a 7-0 victory over Winder-Barrow at Harmon Field in the first round of the Class 6A state tournament. Those goals give him 29 for the season, which is now second in program history for a season behind Ramiro Huitanda's 47 in 2013.
Dalton (18-1) will host Effingham County (12-7) in the second round on Wednesday at a time to be determined.
The Cats finished the game with 27 shots, to just eight for the Bulldoggs.
Winder-Barrow finished its season at 9-7-2. The Bulldoggs were making their first state playoff appearance since 2006.
See the full story in the May 3 issue of the Barrow News-Journal.

The Apalachee girls soccer team lost its GHSA Class AAAAAA first-round playoff match Thursday at Sequoyah 4-0.
The Lady Chiefs advanced to the second round and will visit Tucker on Tuesday.
Apalachee's season came to an end at 12-6. The 12 wins were the most in a single season in the program's history, Lady Wildcats coach Scott Bates said earlier this week.
See the May 3 issue of the Barrow News-Journal for a full story.

Jefferson’s Valerie LaDue scored two goals and Maryanne Kilgore, Makenna Lay and Brianna Rosales added one goal each in a 5-0 shutout of Southeast Whitfield this past Tuesday on the road in the first round of the state playoffs.[Full Story »]